The Alabama Medical Furlough Act, approved by Gov. Bob Riley following a special session May 27-31, will allow non-capital felony offenders with terminal or decapacitating illnesses the option to die in a nursing facility or in their homes.
If the released prisoners do not die within one year or if their medical condition changes, they will be forced to return to prison.
Although the Act is a step toward more humantarian treatment of inmates and will save our state prison system about $8 million each year, the members of our editorial board were concerned about the vagueness of the bill.
For instance, the Act prohibits those convicted of capital murder and sex crimes from furlough. But the Act does not explain what will happen to those who have committed non-capital homocides or those receive a lesser charge through a deal with the prosecution.
Nor does the Act say to which nursing facilities the prisoners will be sent. Since the Act will be federally funded, we assume the inmates will be relocated to federally-funded facilities as opposed to a privately-owned assisted living community. But will those facilities house the freshly-released criminals alongside our grandparents?
Another issue the Act neglects to address is the possible overcrowding of nursing facilities. We assume the reason the Act was passed was to help with the overcrowded prison system. But if we send all terminally ill and incapacitated prisoners to nursing facilities, it may succeed only in projecting the problem to those facilities.
However, the majority of our editorial board agreed it would be better to release terminally ill inmates as opposed to nonviolent offenders and sex offenders because of overcrowding.
The majority also agreed those nursing facilites will need tight security to monitor inmates’ activites, especially if they are grouped with other citizens.
Prisoners who choose to live out their lives in their homes also need to be watched. If no security is put in place, it would be like letting prisoners out of jail with no further consequences.
Inmates’ opportunities to communicate with other prisoners and former partners in crime are another potential problem we found with the Act.
Although we know the Act is an attempt to show compassion to Alabama’s prisoners who will probably die within a year, steps should be taken to ensure the safety and security of law-abiding members of society.
Yes, prisoners are people, but our government should put the well-being and comfort of those who follow the laws before those who don’t.
Although we pity the inmates experiencing discomfort in prison, terminally ill criminals are still criminals.
